There are a number of trends occurring on the high street, from augmented reality changing rooms to checkout-less supermarkets, each bringing a new feeling of freshness to the shopping experience. However, one significant change that is not tangled in the futurology of technological advancements is the growing trend of small shop spaces.
Historically, larger stores have been a sign of market dominance, with brands able to corner the market in certain areas by offering huge retail experiences that beat out the competition, meeting all customer needs. Now, however, national retailers are seeking out smaller high street spaces. IKEA, for example, which has found success with smaller store concepts abroad, has finally brought their small format shops to the UK, offering a more condensed experience separate from their large stores.
But why is this transition happening? While smaller shop spaces may seem counterintuitive, especially having always been told bigger is better, there are actually a number of reasons why they are now being celebrated, with brands like John Lewis also following suit.
Customer Focussed
There’s a significant degree of risk that comes from opening a large store. Brands will research relentlessly prior to establishing a shop space, ensuring that there is suitable demand in the area before committing to making the investment.
Smaller shop concepts, however, alleviate much of that risk and allow for brands to target more specific areas, meeting the demand of customers that might not otherwise be reached. Such targeted locations also ensure a greater likelihood of demand too.
Flexible Design
Smaller store spaces lend themselves to greater flexibility of store design. Despite having less space, such retail sites can be designed in unusual and stylish ways, making use of aesthetic intrigue and statement designs. Larger store spaces, while offering greater capacity, are more constrained by practical design purposes to ensure customer comfort when browsing.
Creative design allows for greater potential customer impact as well as shop displays and stand offs to be curated for a local audience too, celebrating products and styles that are especially popular in certain areas.
Cost Saving
Perhaps the most widely-recognised benefit to host a smaller retail space is the cost saving when compared with larger outlets. Small stores cost less to run with regards to both staffing costs and utilities, making them a safer investment and with the potential for a more secure return in the long run.
Environmentally Friendly
At a time when consumers are placing a greater demand on retailers toward sustainability efforts, it is in the interest of brands to find ways of being more carbon friendly, even neutral or negative. Smaller retail spaces better allow for the management of carbon cost and waste reduction, enabling brands to make more accurate and confident statements regarding their ecological footprint.
Small stores, especially those rooted on the high street, also require less impact from customers too. Whereas larger stores often, due to their capacity, require customers to drive and park vehicles, walkable high streets allow for customers to access them without generating an environmental impact of their own.
